Another Example of Getting a Raise Despite a Tough Economy

I love real-life stories of people who take basic financial principles, put them into action, and GET RESULTS! I especially like it when they do this in an environment where people say it can't be done -- something like getting a raise in the harsh economic climate we're living through.

I've already detailed two stories along these lines:

• One guy got a raise despite his company not giving out raises. 

• A woman has taken many of the steps I detailed in Making the Most of Your Most Valuable Financial Asset and averaged 12% raises. 

Well, it's a pleasure for me to present another related story to you all. This one was left on my post titled How to Ask for a Raise and goes as follows:

I took the initiative and followed a plan very similar to the post. I took on more responsibility, worked hard and set myself up for a raise. It took me about 6 months of working at it before I asked.

I asked my manager by giving him a detailed explanation of why I deserved such raise, and documented it via email and printed letter (makes it easier for him to forward to his boss). Followed up 2 weeks later and was rewarded with a 16% raise.

I was very satisfied, and the best part is it set the stage for further promotion.

By the way, this happened 3 months ago, so business can give raises during bad economic times. 

16% raise, huh? In a depressed economy. Not bad. Not bad at all...  ;-)

Update: Here's an additional comment (left below) from the reader who initially submitted the story above:

Wow I'm famous. To give the post I left a little more context. I consider myself an above average employee, and happen to work with many people that I feel deserve a little more money. The difference was that I asked for it.

I really feel had I not gone through and systematically followed a plan to get a raise, and simply asked for one, I would not have recieved the results I did. I think it was especially important to give my immediate manager the tools for him to get me the raise within a fairly large company. Example: I proposed two different scenarios in which I'd assume more responsibility to justify the raise. In reality I was already doing the work, but I just made it part of a formal job description. My boss knew I was doing these things, but upper management I'm sure was unaware. My point is make it easy for the people in charge of approving your raise to justify the decision.

I also think it helps that I'm continuously taking opportunities to improve my knowledge in my chosen profession (Wealth Management). Besides having an alphabet soup of industry designations behind my name, including the Certified Financial Planner, I'm also pursuing an MBA at a respected college (85% complete). This continued education really casts me in a good light compared to my peers.

Comments

[TL]

Wow I'm famous. To give the post I left a little more context. I consider myself an above average employee, and happen to work with many people that I feel deserve a little more money. The difference was that I asked for it.

I really feel had I not gone through and systematically followed a plan to get a raise, and simply asked for one, I would not have recieved the results I did. I think it was especially important to give my immediate manager the tools for him to get me the raise within a fairly large company. Example: I proposed two different scenarios in which I'd assume more responsibility to justify the raise. In reality I was already doing the work, but I just made it part of a formal job description. My boss knew I was doing these things, but upper management I'm sure was unaware. My point is make it easy for the people in charge of approving your raise to justify the decision.

I also think it helps that I'm continuously taking opportunities to improve my knowledge in my chosen profession (Wealth Management). Besides having an alphabet soup of industry designations behind my name, including the Certified Financial Planner, I'm also pursuing an MBA at a respected college (85% complete). This continued education really casts me in a good light compared to my peers.

TL

[Budgeting in the Fun Stuff]

Nice work TL! My company is taking advantage of the employer's market right now, but I'm already getting documentation ready for my October review.

[Concojones]

Congratulations, TL!